Broken
by beththebookworm
Summary: Bella is broken when Edward leaves. Then she meets a green-eyed boy set on helping her through her hard times. Can he help her put the pieces of her heart back together, or will she remain forever broken? *New Moon&OoTP* Harry/Bella
1. Leaving

September 10

"Bella, we're leaving."

The words were spoken in a firm tone, a tone that left no room for objection or argument of any kind. I knew exactly what he meant, yet couldn't bring my mind to wrap around it. Knowing that I was just stalling the inevitable, I asked, "Why now? Another year-"

"Bella, it's time. How much longer can we stay in Forks, after all? Carlisle can barely pass for thirty, and he's claiming thirty-three now. We'd have to start over soon regardless."

I took a deep breath, willing desperately for my pulse to steady, my heart to calm down. "When you say [i]_we_[/i]-" I whispered, steeling myself for the answer.

"I mean my family and myself." Each word was like a splash of ice water in the face and a trail of acid down my spine at the same time.

"Okay." I said, still stalling. "I'll come with you."

"No, Bella." His tone was gentle, but still undeniably steely. "You can't come with us. Where we're going... it's not the right place for you."

I looked at him, pleading with my eyes. "Where you are is the right place for me."

"You don't get it, Bella. You and me, we don't belong together. You were just a distraction until something else came along."

I stared at him uncomprehendingly.

His eyes were cold and hard, as were his words. "I don't want you to come with me, Bella. You're not good for me."

I flinched as he spoke what I knew to be the truth ever since I saw him first. I felt my throat constrict as I choked out, "You... don't... want me." It wasn't a question, just a fact.

"No."

"Well. That changes things." My voice was calm and reasonable, completely detached from the turmoil of emotions swirling around inside me.

"I'll always love you, Bella... in a way. But not in the way you love me. And I'm tired of pretending. So this is goodbye."

I nodded, my face schooled into a blank, emotionless mask because I knew that if I tried to show any feeling, I would lose it. "I... understand. I've known for some time that I'm not good enough for you. I'm shocked beyond belief that you stayed with me this long." My voice was distant and soft, not betraying anything.

"Promise me on thing." His voice held a tiny tremor of emotion, and I stared deep into his eyes, a small tendril of hope threading itself painfully through my chest.

I nodded mutely, not trusting my voice.

"Don't do anything reckless or stupid," he ordered, his voice no longer quite so detached. Once more, I nodded. His topaz eyes flashed dangerously before they froze, piercing mine with their icy stare. "In exchange, I shall promise you this: This shall be the last time you'll see me. You can go along with your life without any more interference from me. It will be as if I'd never existed," he stated calmly, peacefully.

My vision swam and I began trembling violently as his words circled over and over in my head.

He began backing away, distancing himself from me even more. "Goodbye, Bella."

Finally, I found my voice again. As he turned to leave, I choked out, "Wait!" I stumbled forward numbly, reaching for him.

He spun around and grabbed my wrists, pinning them to my sides. "Take care of yourself," he breathed against my skin as he planted a small kiss on my forehead.

And then he was gone.

My arms rose up and wrapped themselves around my torso tightly, as if to stop the pieces of my shattered heart from falling around me. A high-pitched keening sound reached my ears; it continued for a good five minutes before I realized it was me. Time lost all meaning as the tears I had tried so hard to keep bottled up poured down my cheeks, seeming to etch ice cold trails into my skin, mixing in with the rain that had started to sprinkle.

I don't know how much time had passed since Edward had left, nor did I care. It was starting to grow dark, but still I didn't move.

After some time, my sobs quieted to faint whimpers. The sounds of the forest settled in on me: the occasional song bird, calling out to its mate, the whooshing of the wind as it blew the fallen leaves gently through the air. Suddenly, there was a sound that shouldn't have been there. The heavy pounding of feet echoed through the trees. I heard my name being called, and the voice seemed familiar, but I couldn't bring myself to answer.

"Bella! Bella, oh my god, I thought I'd lost you!" A man burst into my vision. His hair was black with light smatterings of gray, and his eyes were deep brown, staring down at me in worry, shock, and relief.

[i]Dad.[/i]

He leaned down, picked me up like I was weightless ([i]_When did I get on the ground?_[/i]), and began trudging in the direction of what my foggy mind assumed to be home. I stared at him numbly, allowing myself to hang limp in his arms.

"Dad, you're all wet," I mumbled into his jacket.

A strangled sound left his throat, but he said nothing. Soon, we were home. I was being stood up in my room. Next, he stripped me down to my bra and underwear before tugging an old nightgown over my head. I was too numb to feel embarrassed. The last thing I remembered was the cool softness of the sheets and blankets of my bed folding in around me before the world ceased to exist.

Edward's P.O.V.

I felt my dead heart lurch as I watched the love of my existence stare back at me as expressionlessly as I was looking at her. I couldn't believe that she could believe the lies that were coming out of my mouth. How could she not be good enough for me? It was completely the opposite. I was nowhere near enough for her. So maybe it was for the best. As long as she never had to see me again, everything will have worked out.

I backed away, forcing myself to part for the last time with my everything, my Bella. "Goodbye, Bella." God, I hated this. Why did it have to be this way? She lurched forward, but I stopped her, parting with a much too brief kiss on her forehead. I left her view, and jumped up onto a tree to make sure that someone would come for her. Venom tears welled in my eyes, never to be shed, as she cried and mourned. I mourned alongside her, albeit quietly and invisibly. But this was for the best.

That's what I had to tell myself, anyway.

Finally, after three hours, I heard Charlie running towards our spot. I held my breath as he picked her up and carried her back to their house. As soon as they were gone, I whispered, "Goodbye... my love."

And then I left, never to look back.

Charlie's P.O.V.

That_ bastard_! I was going to Crucio him until his brains turned to _liquid_. Then I was going to Imperio him, making him burning all his limbs, slowly and painfully. And then I would Avada Kedavra his sorry ass.

I had kept quiet for far too long, kept Bella in the dark.

It was time she knew about her Wizard ancestry.

..

..

..

Betcha didn't see that last P.O.V. scenario. :3 Or maybe ya did. :P lol, anyways, please tell me if you think I should continue. I want at least two reviews before I post the next chapter. So please review! :D


	2. Revelations

Alright, here's the next chapter. I hope it clears up any confusion that you might have so far. If you still don't get something, feel free to ask. I don't bite. :D

* * *

September 13

Bella's P.O.V.

[i]Everything around me was dark. I couldn't see my hand in front of my face, and I couldn't hear a sound. I stumbled through the blackness, hands outstretched, searching for something solid. Suddenly, my hand came in contact with something hard and cold, and two golden circles became visible near my face. Startled, I tried to jump back, but I was frozen in place. Color from the circles, which I saw to be eyes, began seep up and down, filling in the white planes of a face, the dark bronze of windswept hair.[i/] Edward.

[i]As his entire body came into view, I saw murky shadows flitting around, darting back and forth behind him. Staring fearfully up into his eyes, I opened my mouth. "Edward..." It came out as a strained whisper, yet it echoed loudly in the ominous silence surrounding me.

"Bella," he purred, reaching a hand to cup my face gently. But suddenly, his hand became less gentle, and it moved from my cheek down to my throat. I couldn't breathe.

"Ed-Edward, what are you d-doing?" I choked out. And then the pain started. Searing, burning heat trailed over me, dissolving my skin as though I had been drenched in acid. Through the ringing in my ears, I could distantly hear his derisive laughter, his melodic voice saying, "How could you ever think that [/i]you[i] could ever be good enough for me?" The burning intensified and everything went black again. Screams echoed around me.

"Bella! Bella, wake up damnit!"[/i]

My eyes flew open and I shot up, gasping for breath. I looked around wildly and saw Charlie kneeling by my bedside, worry etched over his features.

"Bella, what am I going to do with you?" he muttered. "Stay here," he said more loudly. "I'll be right back."

Even in the state that I was in, I still had to roll my eyes at my dad. [i]Yeah, because I feel so  
up to getting up and going for a jog around the neighborhood.[/i]

He was only gone for about five minutes before he strode back into the room carrying a cup filled with a steaming grayish-blue liquid. "Here, drink this and it'll make you feel better."

I eyed the concoction wearily; I had seen my father at work in the kitchen before. But under his unusually strict gaze, I was forced to down the mystery drink. Suddenly, my pulse slowed to normal, my skin lost its nerve-induced clamminess, and my mind cleared. I glanced at Charlie open-mouthed. "What was that?" I asked incredulously.

"It was a calming draught." The answer was said with forced nonchalance.

I raised an eyebrow and stared back and forth between him and the now empty cup. Seconds stretched on into minutes, but he remained silent. I cleared my throat awkwardly. "So..."

"Listen, Bella," he interrupted. "I know that the Cullens left. I called the hospital to talk to Carlisle, and the receptionist informed me that he had resigned. And after a few more questions, she told me that they have moved out of town. Now," he leaned forward, "I need you to tell me what happened with Edward."

I flinched at his name. "He... he left." My voice was rough and scratchy. "How long have I been asleep?"

He waved my question away impatiently. "That's not important, please answer me."

I sighed and leaned back on my pillows. "Like you said, they moved. He said... that he couldn't be with me anymore, and that his family was moving anyway. So even if he still l-loved me, it wouldn't have worked out anyway.

"Isabella Marie Swan, we both know that Edward Cullen is more than old enough to make his own decisions. Hell, he's probably half a century older than every single person in his family besides Carlisle."

I stared at him in disbelief. "W-what?" I stammered out, hoping I'd heard him wrong.

"Bella, I know that they're vampires. I have known ever since they first set foot in this town. Well, since they moved here a couple years ago, anyway. Wasn't around for the whole Cullen-Quileute Treaty thing."

I'm pretty sure my jaw dropped.

"Ok, Bells, please hear me out. I have something to tell you that will change your life." He paused and then amended, "Well, it'll change it even more. You know that vampires exist and live all over the world, correct?"

I nodded numbly.

"Well, other supernatural beings besides them exist as well. That is- What I'm trying to say is-" He growled and raked his hand through his thinning hair before sighing. "Bella, I'm a wizard."

I stared at him.

After several seconds of silence, he continued, "Which would make you a witch."

Finally, I composed myself. "Look, Dad, I appreciate you trying to make me feel better after Ed-Ed... [i]he[/i] left, but don't you think this is-"

"Bella, I'm telling you the truth. I'm a wizard, and you're a witch." His dark brown eyes stared into mine.

"Prove it." The words left my mouth before I could think twice. I must have looked as surprised as he did.

"What?" he sputtered.

Suddenly, I felt more confident. "Prove that you're a wizard. If what you're saying is true, then shouldn't you be able to do... magic of some kind?"

He stared at me, nonplussed, before reaching into his back pocket and pulling out a stick of wood roughly 12 inches long. Pointing it at the alarm clock on my night stand, he said, "Wingardium Leviosa." It floated upwards and stayed there, suspended in midair.

"Woah... Do something else!" I urged him, some emotion coloring my voice for the first time since my conversation with [i]him[/i].

He flashed me a relieved smile and pointed his wand toward my door and said, "Accio cup." A glass mug zoomed in and over to him, and he pointed his wand at it. "Aguamenti." The cup filled to the brim with water, and he handed it to me. "Here, your voice is really hoarse."

I drank it, eyes wide. When I finished, he muttered something and the cup flew back out the door.

"So... Believe me now?" he asked, his eyes twinkling wildly.

I nodded, a small smile on my lips. Then I frowned. "You said that I'm a witch. Shouldn't I be able to do magic like you?"

He sighed. "You might want to get comfortable; this is a bit of a long story."

I tugged my covers up to my chin, curling up and staring at him like a child eager for a bedtime story.

"Your mother is a Muggle, which means she is a non-magical person. When you were born, it wasn't entirely certain that you would end up a witch, but you soon proved to be so when you laughed for the first time: you caused the flowers around the house to glow. You were born at a time that was highly dangerous in the wizarding world: Lord Voldemort, a Dark Wizard, was killing off Muggles, Muggle-born witches and wizards, half-bloods, and blood traitors. Fifteen years ago, I learned from an old friend of mine of a prophecy. It was about a child who would be born as the seventh month dies and Voldemort, stating that the child would be marked as his equal and would be able to defeat him. Shortly afterward, you were born."

"But, Dad, that can't be right. I'm eighteen, remember?" I asked, secretly wondering if he had forgotten my recent birthday.

"I'm getting to that Bells. So when I learned of this prophecy, I took you and your mother into hiding. I gave you an age accelerating potion, which could only be given on your birthday if it was to work properly. So on the 31 of July, I gave you a potion that aged you three years, making you four years old."

"B-but my birthday is September 6 ([b]I know that isn't her real birthday, but this is a ff, is it not?[/b]). I just celebrated it with the Cullens!" I spluttered.

"No, Bella. That's when your mother and I told you was your birthday. We figured it would be safer for you. So with the appearance of a four year old and a completely different birthday, you were safe from Voldemort. As further protection for you, Renee and I decided to split up, believing correctly that Voldemort wouldn't look twice at a Muggle woman and her seemingly Muggle child who didn't fit the age description anyway. Then, a few months after your birthday, he chose a boy named Harry Potter, deciding that he fit into the prophecy better than the other choice; Neville Longbottom, I believe his name was." His voice was oddly calm and collected, and his eyes held a faraway look. "After the attack, your mother was too scared to start teaching you of your magical abilities. Even though the entirety of the wizarding world was celebrating the eradication of the Dark Lord who had plagued them for so long, she still believed that it was unsafe for you. She also told me that she would rather remain 'divorced' instead of getting back together with me." Here, his voice was sad and thoughtful.

Without thinking, I reached out and hugged him. "I'm sorry Dad."

He blinked, surprised. "Why on earth should you be sorry?"

"If it wasn't for me, you and mom wouldn't have split up."

He looked at me oddly. Then he started shaking. Confused, I pulled back only to see him laughing soundly. "Ah, Bells. You're too selfless and kind for your own good. You couldn't have controlled your birthday, Bella. It's impossible."

I snorted at that word. After the tricks I had just witnessed, I was beginning to doubt if anything was really impossible.

We sat in silence for a while, each lost in our own little worlds. Suddenly, he grunted and looked at me quizzically. "You know, you're taking this awfully well. Not that I go around revealing magic to people every day, but I expected your reaction to be... well, different, to say the least."

I gave a tiny, uncomfortable smile, picking at my covers nervously. "I seem to be very good at coming to terms with strange and impossible things quickly and easily." My heart thudded painfully as I remembered [i]him[/i] having a similar reaction to Charlie's I learned he and his family were vampires.

An awkward silence descended upon us. He cleared his throat. "So, in light of... recent things, I've decided that you should attend Hogwarts. The headmaster there is a good friend of mine. In fact, he's the one who told me about the prophecy. Anyway, he won't mind you're coming in late. I've already owled him about you coming, and he seemed absolutely thrilled." He leaned towards me conspiratorially. "At first, he might seem a little crazy. That's because he is." He laughed at the look on my face. "Don't worry; he's not a complete nutcase. He's just a little... eccentric."

[i]Eh, tomato, tomahto,[/i] I thought. "So... How'm I going to catch up to the students there? I mean, they'll be more experienced in magic than I, and I don't want someone to set aside a private tutor just for me." I shuddered at the thought.

His eyes twinkled. "I was wondering when you'd ask that. I'll teach you the basic spells that you'll need to know to get along in school this year before I give you the counter to the aging potion. Right now, at eighteen, you're legally able to do magic without the Trace going off. And while I'm at it, I'll fill you in on whatever else you need to know," he added with a slight sigh, seeing my confusion at basically everything in what he just said.

"Alriiiight," I drawled. "Where are we gonna practice?"

Charlie grinned. "You know how I never let you in the basement?"

"We have a basement?" I exclaimed incredulously.

...

O. M. G. I didn't know people would react so positively to the first chapter. I had tons of people add this story to their favorites and to their alerts list. And then I had the reviews, which I absolutely love love love getting. ^.^ So thanks a bunch! Next chapter will be out shortly! :D

Oh, and I hope no one minded the fact that I changed Bella's birthday. ^^; 


	3. Basements and Other Fun Stuff

Chapter Three

September 13 (still)

As it turns it, we did, in fact, have a basement. Although it wasn't that shocking that I had never discovered it before once Charlie showed me where the entrance was concealed. He had taken me downstairs and into the kitchen, stopping right in front of the refrigerator.

"Dad, what are you—"

He cut me off with a wave of his hand as he grabbed the handle and pulled it, not out, but up and to the side, revealing a rectangular hollow right behind it. In the middle of that hollow was another long indention. Just about the right size for…

As if reading my mind, he looked over and smiled at me, pulling out his wand again and placing it in the indention. "I had to do this to prevent some poor Muggle from coming down here. After all, it wouldn't have gone over well if they had come across all the wizard objects I keep and then gone off spreading the word of how the Sheriff was some kind of demon, now would it?" he smiled at me, his brown eyes crinkled at the corner. Then he muttered under his breath, "Not like they would have remembered it afterward anyway."

I ignored his last statement, because as he had been talking, the refrigerator seemed to be losing… solidity. It grew more and more transparent, until suddenly it wasn't there at all, with not even a stray wire left behind to suggest that it had even been there. Instead there was an ancient-looking wooden door in its place.

Opening the door, Charlie motioned for me to follow him down the stairs that seemed to stretch on impossibly far. I did with no small amount of hesitation. As soon as I stepped through the doorway, I heard an ominous thud as the door shut behind me. I glanced back over my shoulder, and squeaked when I saw, not the closed door, but the entire kitchen.

At my squeak, Charlie turned to see what I was looking at before smiling again. "I set it up like that so I'd be able to see whether you were near enough to see me if I walked out. The fridge doesn't disappear when you walk out like it did when we opened the door. It just looks like you suddenly walk out of a closed fridge."

The stairway started out pitch black, but gradually lightened as we descended further. After a while, I found myself standing in a huge stone room that was in no freaking way part of the original design for the house. The room seemed to be slightly bigger than the layout of the first floor. Covering one wall were shelves upon shelves of jars, bottles, boxes, and containers, most of whose contents I didn't recognize at all. The opposite wall was also covered in shelves, but these held a very [i]large[/i] amount of thick, dusty tomes. Random objects decorated the other two walls: a large mirror which showed vague, unfocused shapes, each one varying shades of gray or black; a smaller mirror hanging beside it, seemingly normal; several cloaks and coats hanging on hooks; and many other objects.

I stared around incredulously. "And you call this a [i]basement[/i]?"

Charlie, over by the books, grinned and answered, "I use the term loosely." He rummaged around in a box in front of the shelves and pulled out a wand before reaching up and pulling a book from the bookshelves. He walked back over to me and handed me the wand. "Okay, so this is a spare wand of mine. It won't work perfectly for you as it didn't choose you as its owner. But that's actually good, because if you master the few spells I need to teach you with this wand, you'll be able to perform them excellently with your wand." With that said, he opened the book and began leafing through the pages, trying to find the first spell he wanted me to learn.

I won't go to into detail about the next couple of hours. I learned quite a few spells.

Aguamenti – shot a stream of water from the tip of the wand.

Alohomora – unlocked most locks that hadn't been charmed against the spell.

Colloportus – locked a door and kept it from being opened by "Muggle" means; the counter spell to Alohomora.

Bubble-Head Charm – puts a large bubble with an endless supply of air around the head of the caster.

Confundo – confuses the person whom it was cast on, making them subjective to following orders without question without remembering later.

Bat-Bogey Hex – my favorite, it enlarged a person's bogeys, gave them wings, and caused them to attack their target.

Accio – summoning charm.

Banishing Charm – counter to the summoning charm.

Episkey – before Charlie told me what it did, he said that it was the most important spell I could possibly learn, being me. Then he informed me that it was a healing spell that would heal minor injuries. Hardy-har-har.

There were a few others as well before we moved on to talking about potions. We didn't really linger on that subject because Charlie said that I wouldn't really need to know the previous grades' potions to do well in that class. I had a sneaking suspicion, though, that he was as bad at potions as he was at making spaghetti (lol, refer to that incident in Eclipse that… won't happen in this story. :3).

Then we moved on to some magical objects. He walked over to the cloudy mirror and said, "This is a Foe Glass. It detects its owner's enemies, and they show up in the mirror. How focused an image is depends on how close that enemy is."

Next, he pointed at the smaller mirror. "This is a two-way mirror. It's used to communicate with the person who holds the other mirror. Normally, that's all they're used for, but I had this one charmed to do a bit more." Making sure I was watching, he put his hands on either sides of the frames and tugged gently. As he did so, the mirror began expanding, growing bigger and bigger until it was roughly the size of a door. "I had it charmed so you can travel from mirror to mirror. You know, in case you ever get homesick." He rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly.

Smiling, I reached over and hugged him. We practiced some more with the spells before Charlie called it quits.

"Why don't we go get your things together for school?" he asked, pocketing his wand. "Oh, but first, let me give you the counter to the aging potion."

This was the moment I had been waiting for with an odd sense of excited anticipation and dread. I was gonna be fifteen again! It was such a weird thought, and I couldn't quite grasp the concept. Trying to steady my breathing, I watched as Charlie went back over to the large supply of jars and bottles and pulled down an important looking vial. It was made of pitted crystal, and the dim light flickered off its white contents dizzily. My hand shook slightly as I took the vial from him. Trying to smile, I raised the glass to him in a kinda toast before raising it to my mouth and downing it in one gulp.

It tasted like peppermint, and it left a cold trail as it slithered down my throat. At first, nothing seemed to be happening. Then my entire body went cold and I felt myself shooting down a little bit. My frame shrank slightly, and suddenly, all of my clothes seemed sizes too large, hanging loosely on me. Almost as soon as it had appeared, the coldness disappeared, and I felt fine.

I opened my eyes, not realizing I had shut time as I drank the potion, to see Charlie looking at me with suspiciously bright eyes. He took my arm and led me over to the two-way mirror for me to see.

I was no longer my usual 5'4". I now stood at roughly 4'11". My hair seemed darker, and it hung ruler-straight halfway down my back. I seemed not only shorter, but… just smaller. Like I had somehow shrunken in on myself. The only things that appeared not to have changed were my pale skin and my wide-spaced, chocolate brown eyes, which were looking back at me with a mixture of wonder and, just below the surface, a sense of overwhelming sadness.

Charlie cleared his throat abruptly and I turned my attention to him. "Okay, so while you were asleep, I took the liberty of ordering all of your school supplies. There's a trunk… somewhere around here…" He twisted and turned, searching the room. "Ah! There it is, behind the table." He walked over to the table and pulled out a large trunk about four feet long and two feet tall. "Alright. In here, you have your school robes, quills, parchment, potions supplies, and a shoulder bag among other things. You'll be required to wear your school robes during school days, but you can take some Muggle clothing with you for the weekends and such. Since none of your stuff fits you now, just go pick out the things you want to take with you and I'll have them shrunk down to size." Then he showed me how to shrink and enlarge the trunk to make it easier to carry around.

An hour later, my clothes had been 'fitted' and packed, and we now stood in front of the fireplace that I never knew we had. Charlie had gone up to the TV and done basically the same thing he had with the fridge, which revealed a small room with a large fireplace, big enough for someone to stand in.

Which, I soon realized, was the intention. I listened quietly as Charlie explained how it worked: grab a fistful of Floo Powder, throw it in the fire and wait for it to turn green, shout your destination clearly and succinctly, then step in. He offered to go through first and then come back, but I shook my head.

I took a deep breath before grabbing a fistful of the green powder from a box on the mantel. Throwing it in the fire, I yelled, "The Leaky Cauldron!"

Suddenly, I was sucked into the fireplace. I flinched, waiting for the searing pain from the fire to hit, but all I felt was the air whooshing by as I flew down what seemed to be a long green tunnel. On every side there were several fireplaces, and I think I passed an old man and two kids also using the Network. And then I was stumbling to my feet, wobbling slightly as I tried to catch myself. Then I remembered what Charlie had said: always step to the side quickly so you don't get tackled by another person using the Floo.

I sidestepped just in time; Charlie jumped out of the fireplace much more gracefully than I had. He made sure I was fine and then led me through what looked like a pub, full of random old people, to a door at the back. Through the door was a small, brick room. Charlie took out his wand and tapped a brick on the wall. Suddenly, the bricks began to fold in on themselves, moving away to create an archway for us to step through. On the other side was a bustling alley full of men, women, and children, all wearing long robes, going in and out of the shops and restaurants, carrying cauldrons, bags, and the occasional caged bird.

Charlie laughed at my expression, which I'm sure must have been shocked and awed. He led me through the crowd of witches and wizards, past several shops boasting strange magical objects, to an old looking wooden shop. A sign above the door read [i]'Ollivanders: Makers of Fine Wands since 382 B.C.'[/i] in peeling gold letters.

"This shop isn't [i]really[/i] that old, is it?" I asked, astonished.

He glanced up at the sign and nodded. "Sure is. Been run by the same man ever since it opened up."

I stared at him dubiously. There's just no way. We entered the shop: it was a small, darkly lit room. Its only furniture consisted of an ancient looking desk and chair off in a corner. Lining all the walls and stretching up impossibly high were boxes and boxes and [i]boxes[/i] that were long and thin, presumably holding wands. I looked around with a faint stir of interest; this store reminded me slightly of a bookshop.

In the dim lighting of the shop, something on the desk caught my eye, a wand box. I walked over to it and ran my finger of the top. The box itself wasn't really anything special: it was made out of a tan, smoothed wood, and it was the same size as all the other boxes in the store. Unlike the others, though, this one wasn't covered in a fine layer of dust. It looked like someone had set it here recently.

I glanced back at Charlie. He was looking over at a display labeled 'Wand Holsters.' Turning back to the box, I reached for the lid…

"Ah! Hello there!"

I jumped, nearly knocking the box off the table, as an old man with long, tangle hair and pale blue eyes stepped out of the shadows to stand next to me.

"Miss Swan, pleasure to meet you. I see you're interested in my newest wand. Just made it this morning, I did." He smiled at me, the edges of his eyes crinkling. A distant part of me, the part observing and keeping track of everything that had happened since… he left, noted his distinct English accent, and I made a mental note to ask Charlie later where exactly the school I was to attend was. The man continued staring at me. "Well, go on. Try it." He motioned toward the box, and I glanced back at it uneasily.

Taking one last look at Charlie, who was finally paying attention to us, I grabbed the box and opened the hinged lid. I reached in and gingerly pulled out the wand. It was a smooth, dark wood, and as soon as my fingers closed around the wood, the wand heated up almost unbearably, and a burst of orange flame spouted from its tip.

"Curious… Very curious…" the old man, whom I took to be Ollivander, muttered.

"Excuse me, but what's so curious?" I asked, staring at the wand in my hand.

He shook his head and said, "The core of that wand was just donated to me early this morning. It is a phoenix tail feather. One of the only three feathers ever given by that phoenix." He glanced at Charlie. "Strange that you would end up with that wand…" He murmured to himself for a minute before going all professional. "Yes. Your wand. Willow, 12", phoenix feather. That'll be seven galleons."

I raised an eyebrow at the word. Galleons? What the heck was a galleon? Charlie, however, stood ready with the right amount of money, and paid Ollivander before grabbing my arm and pulling me out of the shop. Once outside, he looked at his watch and swore. "We're going to be late if we don't hurry… Here, Bells, hold onto my arm." He slid his arm around my waist and pulled me to him in a hug. Suddenly, it felt like I was being sucked into a vacuum of void, yet somehow crushing, space then spit out again, all with the lack of oxygen.

I blinked, disoriented. We were standing in the 'basement' back home. "What the heck was that?" I demanded, still trying to catch my breath.

My dad was grabbing my trunk and throwing me a robe and cloak. "Side-Along Apparition. Not the most comfortable way to travel, but it is the quickest method. And don't worry; it's not as bad when you're the one doing the actual apparating. But c'mon, we need to hurry up or we'll be late to see the headmaster." I slipped on the robe and cloak over my jeans and sweater, pulling my hair back into a shoulder ponytail.

He ushered me back into the room with the fireplace, pushing me toward the soon-to-be green flames. "Why don't we just Apparate to the headmaster's office?" I asked. [i]Although I'm not exactly complaining…[/i]

"There are wards around the school the restrict the act of Apparating in and out of the school grounds," he explained, grabbing a fistful of the Floo powder.

I nodded like I understood what he was talking about and stepped into the emerald green flames, shouting, "Headmaster Dumbledore's Office!" I felt myself sucked once again down the green tunnel, shooting past other fireplaces and Floo users. Once again, I stumbled ungracefully out of the other fireplace, this time falling on my butt.

"Ah, young Miss Swan…"

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And there's the third chapter! Sorry for the wait. I really must thank everyone who reviewed and faved and alerted this story and me. :DD So… THANKS! ^^ I never thought this story would get such a positive reaction. And I'll try to answer your reviews tomorrow. Or, later in the morning (it's 12:54 here; Happy New Years! :D). So I hope you like. Message me or review on the story if ya have a question or anything. I don't bite! …Hard. XD

Oh! And I would like to point out that Bella didn't MASTER all of the spells Charlie showed her. Some she got, and others she merely understood the concept of but was unable to perform them at that point. Just thought I'd say that so you didn't think Bella would start out as a witch genius and whatnot. Lol, night! :D


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